


The Scaredy Cat

by Pokeluv101



Category: Servamp (Anime & Manga)
Genre: F/M, Fem Mahiru, Fluff, In a future where Kuro turned into a human, family au
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-21
Updated: 2018-02-21
Packaged: 2019-03-22 05:47:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,404
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13757565
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Pokeluv101/pseuds/Pokeluv101
Summary: Servamp Character Appreciation Week || Kuro || Day 4: GrowthKuro's daughter wanted to stop going to school so Kuro tells her the story of a scaredy cat that turned into a brave lion.





	The Scaredy Cat

“Kuro, can I talk to you about something?” He looked from his game when Mahiru walked into the room. She sat on the edge of the bed with a worried expression. Kuro set aside his game and shuffled over the bed until he was next to her. He pulled her onto his lap and stroked her hair, comforting her without words. She hummed contently and leaned into his warmth.

“What is it? Did Machi give you trouble when you tried to get her to sleep?” He asked. Their young daughter, Machi, was surprisingly strong willed. Kuro knew that Mahiru would become upset if he told her that their stubborn daughter took after her. Admittedly, Kuro spoiled her more than he should and gave her a lot of freedom for a nine year old.

“It’s not that.” Mahiru shook her head. She spoke in a soft voice so their daughter wouldn’t hear them in the next room. “She said that she doesn’t want to go to school anymore. I tried to ask her why but she wouldn’t tell me. Do you think you can talk to her? She might tell you. What if someone’s picking on her at school and that’s why she doesn’t want to go back?”

“You fret too much, Mahiru.” He tightened his arms around her and rubbed his cheek against her soft hair. “I don’t think she’s being bullied. Machi knows how to defend herself. I taught her some fighting tactics. She has a short temper so she’ll use them when someone upsets her.”

“You taught her what? Have you been teaching our daughter how to fight while I’m at work? You need to talk to me before you make decisions like that.” Mahiru yelped when Kuro suddenly stood with her in his arms. He placed her on the bed gently and threw the blanket over her. Before she could interrogate him further, he ran out of the room to escape his wife’s wrath.

In the doorway, he stopped and smiled sheepishly at her. “I’m going to talk to Machi now. You should go to sleep first.”

Kuro waved to her and hoped that she wouldn’t be angry when he returned. He walked to the next room and knocked on the door. It was quiet on the other side but he knew that it was too soon for Machi to be asleep. He opened the door and saw a light under Machi’s blanket. He chuckled because he could guess why she didn’t answer when he knocked.

“You’re lucky that mom isn’t with me, Machi. She’ll give you a four hour lecture if she knew you were playing video games this late.” Kuro said. Machi took the blanket off her head. Like Kuro guessed, there was a game console in her hand. He allowed her to save her game before he took the device from her and placed it on the shelf. He pulled a chair next to her bed and sat down.

“You won’t tell mom, will you, Dad?” Machi asked him and Kuro shrugged.

“Do you promise not to play after nine again?” She nodded eagerly. “I won’t tell Mom then. But there is one more thing I want to know. Mom told me that you don’t want to go to school anymore. I know school is troublesome but you can still learn a lot there. Don’t you want to play with your friends at school too?”

“I don’t wanna go to school tomorrow. Can’t I be home schooled from now on?” Machi scrunched up her face in disapproval. She had the same expression Mahiru would make whenever she was determined to have her way. Kuro shook his head with a weary smile. “Don’t make me go back to school, Dad! You said that I’m super smart.”

“You are smart. Because of that, you should know that going to school is good for you. Do you want to tell me why you really don’t want to go to school anymore? I’ll talk to mom and convince her not to take you to school anymore if you tell me the truth.” Kuro prompted. She worried her lower lip before she answered him.

“… There’s this boy in my class.”

“Did he hurt you?” Kuro’s eyes flashed for a moment, thinking that the boy did something to make her afraid to return to school. He felt relieved when she shook her head.

“No, he’s super nice. He just makes me feel funny. I want to run away whenever he’s around because I get all nervous. But then I want to talk to him because he makes me happy and laugh. Mom said it’s a crush but I don’t want to feel like that anymore! Feelings are stupid.” She crossed her arms and frowned.

“Feelings are stupid? They’re scary is what they are. But you can’t avoid them for the rest of your life by running away. I learned that the hard way.” Kuro said. He leaned back on his chair and asked, “Do you wanna hear a story? It’s about scaredy cat who turned into a brave lion. He was afraid of his feelings just like you. But someone special taught him how to be brave.”

“I’m a little old for bedtime stories but okay!” Machi laid back in her bed. Kuro took a moment to think of how to tell her the story. She was still young so he hesitated to tell her the details of his adventures.

 _“Once upon a time, there was this girl._ ”

“I thought this story was about a cat.”

“We’ll get to him soon.  _This girl was the kindest, bravest and by far the most troublesome person in the world. She liked simple things so she picked up a scaredy cat she found abandoned on the street. But this cat wasn’t simple. He had so many emotions he was running from, like fear and guilt. Then, the girl made him feel even scarier things, like love and hope._ ”

“What did the cat do then?”

“ _Well, now that he was her pet, he couldn’t run. The cat decided that avoiding his feelings would be the next best thing. He evaded her questions that would make him talk about his past. He ignored how his heart felt. That didn’t work for long though._ ” Looking back, Kuro knew that he was being silly. “ _Eventually, he became so scared and decided to hide from his friend. Hiding made things worse. Do you know what made everything better?_ ”

She shook her head and Kuro answered, “ _The cat decided not to run anymore and faced his feelings. Who would’ve thought all those feelings he was running from would make him stronger? His guilt made him smarter so he wouldn’t make more mistakes he’ll regret. Love gave him courage to face the hardships in his life. Those feelings made him grow into a strong lion. Moreover, they made him human_.”

Kuro continued to tell her the adventures they went on. He was always careful not to tell her too much and risk scaring her. Eventually, he saw that she was becoming drowsy and it was difficult for her to keep her eyes open. He tucked the blanket around her and kissed her forehead.

“I know that feelings like love are confusing. They make you want to stand on a roof and scream how wonderful that person is. Then you just want to bury yourself in a ditch because you’re so embarrassed you’ll consider doing that. In the end though, it’s better to feel something than nothing at all. You willing to go back to school and face those feelings?”

“… I’ll try.” She shrugged. Machi closed her eyes and soon she was asleep.

“I can’t believe that the one thing you got from me is my terrible habit of running away.” Kuro chuckled and ruffled her hair. He made sure that she was comfortable in her bed before he left the room. He opened the door and found Mahiru standing on the other side. From her grin, he knew that she had been listening through the door. He blushed at her knowing smile.

“Did you have to call me troublesome in your story?” She asked but she continued to smile as she took his arm and they walked back to their room. Mahiru leaned her head against his arm and looked up at him with tender eyes. “You really have grown since we were kids.”

**Author's Note:**

> I wasn’t going to write for Servamp Week because I’m super busy but I managed to scrap this together today.


End file.
